"You will follow my orders, Lilly Ann. I will not explain tohim…" He trails off. "I need to know you are safe."
Lilly's shoulders slump, and she bows her chin.
"Thank you." George's tone takes on a gentler note, and he looks at me. "Let's go."
The driveto the local police station seems to take hours when, in reality, it can't be more than fifteen minutes. I'm in the back seat of George's decked-out SUV, and I briefly wonder if they ship their tanklike vehicles to wherever they go or if one can rent a car like this. Anything to keep my mind off what's happening to my girls.
Fuck taking it slow. Fuck figuring out if we can make it work for our daughter's sake. When this is over, we will be together, and she will not just be my girlfriend.
The car comes to a halt, and I'm out the door before George can put it in park.
"Shit!" Rhys curses.
"Do not let him talk until I'm in there!" George shouts after Rhys, who is on my heels.
"Wes. Dude, you need to wait up."
I jerk around. My fists are so tight the skin over my knuckles burns. "Wait? How long did you wait before you followed George for Lilly, huh?"
Rhys halts, and his features harden. "You cannot compare—"
"THE FUCK I CAN'T!" I'm getting in his face, grasping the front of his jacket. "My family is in there." I point at the building behind us before latching back onto him.Family.My voice is shaky as I feel like my heart is about to burst out of my chest. "The mother of my child is somewhere in this building. What if something goes wrong with our baby because of what she's going through?" I'm nearly hyperventilating. I can't draw the necessary air into my lungs.
Rhys's hands land on either side of my head, and he forces me to look at him. "Listen to me. King will be okay. Your baby will be okay. We never leave one of ours behind." His hands drop to my shoulders, shaking me until my teeth rattle. "Do you hear me? They will both be fine." This situation can't be easy on him either. It's too similar to what we went through—almost losing one of ours.
Finally able to inhale, I force myself to jerk my head up and down.
"Good. I'm not going to fail you again." Several emotions cross Rhys's features, and I crumble. I step into him and let him hug me. Rhys and I have officially found our way back.
"Let's figure out what's going on." George's voice comes from behind us, and Rhys and I step apart.
I draw in a slow breath, but it's no good. As soon as we take one step toward the double doors leading to the station, I take off again.
Inside,George passes me quickly before I can lose it on the first person I see—a middle-aged, wannabe cop whose circumference is longer than he is tall.
"I would like to speak to someone regarding the arrest of Kingsley Turner," George addresses the man behind the glass.
"Are you her legal counsel?" the guy questions, not looking up from his phone.
"I'm Miss Turner's security guard," George deadpans.
That gets the asswipe's attention, and he does a double take. "Security guard? Why would a murdering stripper need a—"
"Watch your fucking mouth, you fat—" My palms are pressed against the barrier that protects the useless piece of shit from me wrapping my fingers around his triple chin.
A hand clamps over my mouth before I can finish my threat, and I'm dragged backward.
George blocks my view, and he says something in a low tone. I can't make out his words, which pushes my adrenaline level even higher. King is my girlfriend.
Rhys tightens his hold on me, and I strain my ears to hear what George and Fuckface discuss. When George turns toward us, Rhys loosens his grip slightly, although not enough for me to escape him.
When did he become so freakishly strong?
"He will locate the sheriff who was with the agents during the arrest. King is still being processed, but from what he knew, she was fine." He looks at Rhys. "Take him to the waiting room." He points down a hallway. "I'm going to call Lilly and see if she got ahold of Camden and then wait to speak to the sheriff or one of the agents."
Rhys starts manhandling me down the corridor. My legs won't cooperate, and he's switching between pushing and pulling until we reach the small room with two rows of plastic chairs. He deposits me in one and then plants his ass in the one next to me, clamping a hand on my shoulder again to keep me rooted.
We stay like this for-fucking-ever until I finally can't sit still anymore.